


Wild Huntress

by Kiteria_Faye



Category: Naruto
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-11
Updated: 2015-06-22
Packaged: 2018-04-03 22:39:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,571
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4117351
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kiteria_Faye/pseuds/Kiteria_Faye
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Her parents were murdered because she was wanted for what she is, and yet she was driven from the place she called home for the very same reason. Found with a fever by Jiraiya she learns the ways of the ninja and vows to avenge her parents' death. She seeks out the man who killed her parents, but not everything goes as planned.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

The wind blew as a young man in his mid thirties entered the Village Hidden Beneath the Moon. He stood out in the darkness. The moonlight seemed to bounce off his pale skin and yellow, snake-like eyes as he walked through the deserted streets of the sleeping village. His presence went unnoticed by the sleeping civilians, sleeping comfortably inside their homes, but not by the ninja guarding the village. They jumped from the rooftops and surrounded him.

"State your name and your business."

One said and the yellow eyed man simply smirked at them before disappearing from sight. The ninja looked around trying to find him, but couldn't find him anywhere. Suddenly a cry of pain rose into the peaceful, night silence and the smell of blood filled the air as the yellow eyed man cut down ninja after ninja with a single swing of the sword in his hand. He lifted the sword to his face and licked the blood off the blade before smiling at the dead ninja at his feet. He stepped over them and continued on his way through the village until he got to the house in the eastern part of the village. He could fell the chakra signatures of three people inside, but it was only the one of a young girl he was after.

He stepped inside and as he made his way to the bedroom of that little girl he suddenly felt the cold steel of a kunai pressed to his neck and laughed dryly.

"What do you want?"

A man asked as he made sure to keep the kunai pressed to the yellow eyed man's throat. The sound of the man's voice roused the little girl, no older than nine, from her sleep. Her eyes widened when she saw her father and the yellow eyed man in her room. She saw the yellow eyed man turn and suddenly grab her father's wrist and pull his arm behind his back. She used that time to climb beneath her bed and into the small cubby that had been hollowed out. She held the latch open just enough to watch her father and the yellow eyed man. Her father tried to fight, but the yellow eyed man killed him. The girl started to let out a small whimper as she watched her father fall lifeless to the ground, but slapped a hand to her mouth and held it in so as not to be found.

"Now where did that little brat go?"

She heard the yellow eyed man ask and held her breath, praying not to be found. The man walked towards her bed and she shut her eyes in fear of being found until she heard a gasp from her bedroom doorway. She opened her eyes to see her mother looking down at her father before glaring at the yellow eyed man.

"Orochimaru."

Her mother spit the name out as if it were some form of disease before pulling a kunai from the pouch on her thigh.

"What are you doing here?"

Her mother asked and she jumped when she heard the yellow eyed man, Orochimaru's laughter.

"I am quite curious about your daughter Meyzuki."

He said and the little girl watched as her mother glared at Orochimaru.

"You'll never have her!"

Her mother yelled before charging at him.

Her mother didn't last as long as her father had, but she managed to stab her kunai into Orochimaru's arm before he killed her. The little girl jumped in surprise when she suddenly saw her mother's dead and bloody face right in front of her as her body fell next to her bed. The little girl's eyes welled up with tears, but she refused to make a sound. She heard Orochimaru move around, trying to find her, but after a while he cursed to himself before disappearing out her window. The little girl didn't move from her spot for a while, but once she was certain the yellow eyed man was gone she crawled out of her cubby hole and knelt down next to her mother. The tears streamed down the little girl's face and she collapsed onto her dead mother's body as the sobs wracked her body. She'd just lost the two people who loved her the most because of the yellow eyed man's interest in her and she didn't even understand why he was interested in her in the first place.

* * *

  **-THREE YEARS LATER-**

* * *

 The sky rumbled with the promise of a storm as a figure with shoulder length white hair and ragged clothes walked down the street of the Village Hidden Beneath the Moon. Her gray eyes resembling the storm clouds above. She didn't notice the six figures following her, she was too focused on trying to find something to eat. As she made her way towards the bakery she was suddenly pulled into an alleyway by three of the six figures. She instantly started to fight against them, but stopped when she was slapped across the face.

"That's enough now girlie."

One said and the girl looked up to see a man with black eyes and brown hair cut short with a scar along his left cheek. She'd seen him before from wanted posters up in the village square. He was Morikoshi, the main sex slave trader in all of the five nations.

"What do you want with me?"

The girl asked as she tried to get free of the three men holding her.

"Isn't it obvious?"

Morikoshi asked with a laugh as he stepped closer and tilted her head up so she looked up at him.

"You'll fetch a very pretty penny."

He said before nodding to the others and they all moved to tie her hands and feet.

"No!"

The girl cried, but they didn't listen. She tried to fight them, but got slapped again. She stilled, her hair falling in her face so that it shadowed her eyes and a deep, rumbling sound came from her making two of the men stop what they were doing and look at her funny.

"I said **no**!"

The girl growled before her body suddenly started to be surrounded by a white light.

"What the..?"

Morikoshi started, but then glared at her glowing form.

"Hold her down!"

He snapped at the five men and they all moved forward to try and hold the girl down, but were suddenly knocked back by a white and purple furred tigress.

"What the fuck?"

One of the men asked in shock before his throat was suddenly ripped out by the tiger. The other five tried to run, but the tiger pounced on them and killed them instantly. Morikoshi tried to run from the alley, but the tiger jumped and knocked him to the ground. He rolled around and held his arms up in front of his face trying to protect himself, but that didn't stop the tiger's sharp canines from tearing into the flesh on his neck, ending his life. Villagers watched in awe at the white and gray furred tiger. Both amazed and fearful of it. All their eyes widened when the tiger was surrounded by white light and turned back into the form of the white haired girl from earlier. She held a bloody hand to her head as the world seemed to spin to her.

"Monster!"

Someone yelled and the girl looked up to see the villagers of her village looking at her with fear and hate filled eyes.

"I-"

She was cut off when one of the kids threw a rock at her and hit her in the side of her head. The other kids and villagers quickly followed suit and the girl shielded herself with her arms as she ran. The villagers' cries of monster and murderer could be heard as she fled towards the forest surrounding the village. The girl tripped over a rock and went sprawling onto the forest floor, but she didn't bother getting to her feet again. She just curled up into a ball on her side and started to cry. As if sensing the girl's anguish, the sky broke and rain started falling. The water mixed with the girl's tears, but still she did not move. She'd lost her parents years ago for reasons she didn't understand and was just cast out of her own village because of a power she didn't have full control over. She honestly had no reason to go on so she just laid there and let her tears fall and mix with the rain, hoping that it would somehow wash away the pain she felt though she knew it wouldn't happen.


	2. Chapter 2

~Unknown~

I walked through the mass of trees, happy that they somewhat shielded me from the rain. I was about to keep going when I heard something. I stopped and listened, but for the longest time the only thing I could hear was the sound of rain. Just as I was beginning to think it had been my imagination I heard it again, though this time it was somewhat louder. I looked around as I heard the sound again. I headed towards it, it sounded like….a whimper? I looked around, but all I could see was trees. The sound got louder the farther north I went until I came to the edge of a clearing. I looked around but didn't see anything. I was about to turn around when I heard the sound again. I turned and my eyes widened when I saw a small figure lying on their side in the dirt, the rain pelting down on them but they made no move to get to cover. I walked over to the figure and it was no wonder I hadn't seen it at first, whoever it was was completely covered in dirt despite the water raining down on them. It was when they whimpered that I noticed the quite feminine features to the person before me and a big smile covered my face and I laughed to myself.

_'Pretty lady…'_

I thought as I knelt down, but as I got closer I realized the lady was no more than a child, roughly around twelve.

 _'But what is she doing out here_?'

I wondered as I reached a hand out and brushed the girl's mud coated hair from her face and my eyes widened in shock when I realized something else was mixed in with it, blood. My eyes narrowed at the thought of someone hurting a child, a female child no less and it was then that I realized her forehead seemed a little warmer than normal. I placed my palm flat against her forehead and pulled away when I felt the burning of a fever.

"Oh, this is not good. If I were to leave you you could die."

I said aloud to myself since it seemed the girl before me was unconscious.

I looked to where it appeared the girl had come from and frowned.

_'If I remember correctly, there is a village a few miles from here. The Village Hidden Beneath something or another.'_

I thought, not exactly remembering the name of the village, but it appeared the girl had come from that direction and I briefly wondered if I should take her back, then I remembered she had blood running down her face from a wound on her temple and shook that idea away.

_'I'll just wait til the girl wakes up, then decide what to do.'_

I thought as I leaned forward and swooped the girl up in my arms. I only just then noticed how small she was. It felt like she hadn't eaten in weeks and I noticed her clothes were tattered and were barely staying held together. I looked down at the girl in my arms before turning and heading towards a cave I'd seen a few miles back. I could get us both out of the rain and I could help the girl through her fever as well.

_'Though I can't help but wonder, just who is this girl?'_

I made it to the cave just as the storm seemed to pick up with a vengeance. Winds that seemed to be able to blow entire houses over raged and the rain falling from the sky felt like a thousand needles as it hit your skin. I was extremely grateful I'd decided to come to this cave. I laid the girl down against one of the walls of the cave away from the opening before frowning as I realized we'd need a fire. I sighed to myself before heading back out into the storm. I ignored the rain as I gathered wood that wasn't too soaked before returning to the cave. I put it all in a pile while saving some for later, then I used two kunai to make a spark and light it. It didn't take long for the cave to fill with warmth and I sighed as I took the scroll from my back and leaned it against the wall before leaning next to it. I heard a whimper and turned to look at the girl who was lying curled up on the cave floor, shivering. I sighed before going over to her and moving her closer to the fire. Her shivering stopped, but she didn't relax from her curled position. I frowned as I realized if she were going to heal properly she'd need to be clean. I could feel the moisture of a hot spring in the back of the cave and sighed to myself once again before picking up the girl and walking towards it. I tore off a piece of her clothes and rinsed it before using it to get the blood and dirt off her body and out of her hair.

_'Those clothes will have to go. They're filthy and barely cover her. It's indecent.'_

I thought before using a kunai and cutting the dirty clothes off her. I tossed them in a random direction before washing the rest of her body, but staying away from between her thighs. I may be a pervert-I mean researcher, but that didn't mean I molested sleeping, fever-stricken, helpless little children. I took off my outer cloak and laid it on the ground before laying the girl on it and covering her. I noticed she instantly curled up into a little ball and start to shiver. It wasn't from the cold, because it was warm inside the cave, it was probably from the fever.

_'Well, I can't just leave her bare.'_

I thought before pulling my sash from around my waist. I held it up infront of me and smiled when I realized the girl's small body was actually a blessing at the moment. I used a kunai and quickly cut the sash in certain places and tying others together until a top and bottom were made. I slid the new clothes over the girl to cover her body before picking her up and carrying her back to the fire. I sat down next to her and watched her. Now that she wasn't covered in dirt and blood I could clearly see what she looked like. She had shoulder length silver-white hair that reminded me of Kakashi's in color. Her skin was pale though her face was red although that was from the fever. Her body was small, too small to be healthy and it was even more obvious that she hadn't eaten in quite some time. Her eyes were closed and her mouth parted as her breathing was labored and for some reason I felt like I should help her even after she makes it through her fever. I sighed to myself, something I seemed to be doing quite a lot of lately, before leaning against the wall of the cave opposite of my scroll on the other side of the cave and closed my eyes as I leaned my head back.

_'I wonder why I want to help her?'_

I thought before relaxing my mind and going into a meditative state.

* * *

~Unknown~

I could feel myself floating somewhere, though I couldn't figure out where. I opened my eyes and saw I was surrounded by white light.

_'Where am I?'_

I thought as I looked around to see if I could see anything.

**'You are in my world.'**

A voice said and I looked around with wide eyes, but still couldn't see anything other than pure white light, though it seemed to be a sort of mist rather than a light.

"Who's there?"

I asked and suddenly the white mist was replaced by a large jungle. The trees towered overhead and I could practically taste the humidity in the air. Something made the leaves of a bush behind me rustle and I turned in time to see a large white and gray stripped tiger leap up onto a fallen tree and stand there looking down at me with golden colored eyes.

"Ah!"

I screamed and fell back over a tree root as I tried to get away.

**'Do not fear me child. I will not harm the one who houses my spirit within themselves.'**

The voice said again and I looked around before slowly looking back at the tiger to see it was sitting down and staring at me.

_'Was it the one who said that? We're the only two here and I didn't say it.'_

I thought and heard laughter coming from the tiger's direction.

**'It is true, I am the one who is speaking to you.'**

It said and my eyes narrowed in confusion when I didn't see it's mouth moving, then widened in shock as I realized I heard it's voice in my head.

_'But, how can I…?'_

**'Understand me?'**

The tiger suggested and I nodded.

**'It is because I am essentially a part of you.'**

It said and my eyes widened in shock and fear.

_'I'm a jinchuriki!?'_

I asked in fear, not wanting it to be true.

**'Not quite. You are one of the direct descendants of the founders of the Village Hidden Beneath the Moon. Do you know why it is called that?'**

The tiger asked and I shook my head.

**'Because, the founders were like you. They had spirits of powerful hunters housed within themselves and we hunters are active at night, most of the time we are guided by the light of the moon. We hunt beneath the moon's light. Thus your village was named after that fact.'**

The tiger said and I blinked in surprise.

_'The founders had spirits within them? Were they tigers too?'_

I asked, but the tiger shook its head.

 **'No. Some had tiger spirits like you, others had wolf or panther or fox. Though through the generations the fox trait was dropped and now there is only a child born from our village that is born with the spirit of either a wolf, a panther, or a tiger within them**.'

The tiger said and I noticed it had a distinctively feminine voice.

_'So, you are inside me?'_

I asked and she dipped her head in a nod.

 _'But why? I don't understand, why is there a child born from my village with this trait?_ '

I asked confused and heard the tigress sigh in my head.

**'I cannot fully tell you why the founders didn't choose to keep their traits to themselves instead of passing them down to their children and having them pass it on to theirs, but I can tell you that because you have this trait many people will want to come after you. Either to kill you or to use you and your power.'**

She said and I gasped as flashes of the night my mother and father were killed filled my head. They had been killed because that man, Orochimaru, wanted me for some reason. Was that reason because I had the traits of my ancestors?

**'You are correct child. This, Orochimaru, wanted to use the power you possess but your parents wouldn't allow it and lost their lives protecting you.'**

She said and I felt tears stinging my eyes.

**_'Do not feel sad child, they loved you very much.'_ **

The tigress said and I shook my head.

_'They died because of me!'_

I shouted and heard her sigh again.

**'Listen, even if they had succeeded in defeating Orochimaru there would have been others coming after you because you house my spirit within you. I can sense you want revenge on this man and I can help you get it.'**

She said and I looked up at her in shock.

_'H..How?'_

I asked and she gave me the equivalent of a feline smile before jumping from the tree she was sitting on and landing right infront of me.

**'Remember when those men attacked you in your village? I protected you then and I will protect you again.'**

She said and my eyes widened as I remembered the power that surged through me, then seeing everything from another perspective, then having the villagers run me out with shouts of 'monster' and 'murderer'. I felt tears in my eyes again at the thought that the village I had grown up in didn't want me.

**'Do not feel sad child, you are not alone.'**

She said, but I shook my head as I wiped my eyes.

_'Yes I am. No one would care if I were to die.'_

I sobbed and suddenly heard a purring sound before feeling soft fur rub against my side.

**'That's not true child. I would care, but also another would care.'**

She said and I stopped crying and looked down at her.

_'W…who?'_

I asked and she smiled at me like she had before.

**'Wake up and you shall see.'**

She said before turning and walking away from me.

_'Wait!'_

I cried after her and raised a hand out after her as if to stop her and she did stop, but only long enough to look at me from over her shoulder.

**'Don't worry child, I will still be with you when you wake.'**

She said and started to walk away again.

_'But….'_

**'I will be there, I promise Alixa.'**

She said and everything suddenly blurred together and I was surrounded by the white mist again, then everything went black.


	3. Chapter 3

**~Unknown~**

I listened to the girl sleep and noticed she seemed to be coming out of her fever on her own, though it also seemed that whatever she was dreaming about was upsetting her. Her eyes slowly opened and I looked down at her face to see gray eyes looking around curiously. When they landed on me she cried out in shock and before I could say anything a wave of power shot out from her and threw me back. I landed on my back and groaned as I sat up, rubbing my head.

" _That_  was unexpected."

I said as I looked at where the little girl sat with her knees pulled up to her chest as she squeezed herself between the side of the cave and a rock. I could feel her chakra signature and was shocked at how powerful it was, though it was wild feeling and she was obviously untrained. I got to my feet and moved back to where I had been. I moved towards her, but stopped when I heard her whimper.

_'Is she afraid of me? Why?'_

I wondered, but didn't try to approach her anymore. I simply sat down next to the fire and held my hands out to warm them up since the storm was still raging outside and the temperature had dropped some.

"I'm not gonna hurt you you know."

I said without looking away from the fire. I could feel her chakra fill with shock, then confusion, then settle back on fear.

"It's kinda cold. You sure you want to be that far away from the fire? It's really warm."

I said and almost smirked when I heard her move out from behind the rock, but still stayed away.

"I promise I won't hurt you. I'm the one who found you. You had a fever so I brought you here so you could get better."

I said and felt shock and confusion replace the fear in her chakra, then curiosity joined them. I looked up to see her crawl on her hands and knees from her spot over to the fire before sitting and drawing her knees up to her chest again.

_'Quiet little thing isn't she?'_

I thought to myself as I saw her scoot closer to the fire.

"T-Thank you."

She whispered and I barely heard her above the howl of the wind outside, but I had.

"You're very welcome. What's your name?"

I asked and noticed she started to play with her fingers.

"You don't have to tell me you know."

I said after a while of her hesitancy. She looked up at me and I smiled at her which made her look away.

"My name's Jiraiya the Toad Mountain Sage."

I said standing up and striking a pose which only made her stare at me for a bit. I frowned when I thought I'd scared her when she suddenly burst into a fit of laughter. I frowned more as I sat back down.

"It's not that funny you know."

I said with a pout and that only seemed to make her laugh even more.

_'Well, at least she's not scared.'_

I thought with a small smile.

"A..Alixa."

She said when she finally got her laughter under control. I looked at her confused until I realized she'd answered my earlier question.

"Well Alixa, it's nice to meet you."

I said with a smile and she looked up at me before smiling slightly in response.

"What were you doing in the middle of the forest anyway?"

I asked and noticed her smile disappeared instantly. At first I didn't think she'd answer me, but she did.

* * *

-Alixa-

"What were you doing in the middle of the forest anyway?"

He asked and my smile dropped.

_'Can I really tell him or will he react the same as the villagers?'_

I wondered slightly fearful of having someone so kind turn out to be so mean.

**'Relax child, he will not respond the same. You can trust him.'**

I heard the tiger's voice say within my head and nodded.

"I had been run out of my village because they all thought me to be a monster."

I said.

"Why would they think that?"

He asked and I played with my fingers before answering.

"Because I turned into a tiger and killed the men who were trying to capture me to sell as a sex slave."

I said and waited for him to get fearful and attack me, instead I felt anger from him and flinched until I heard his words.

"How dare they!"

He said and I looked up at him in shock.

"How dare they try and sell a child as a sex slave, and what kind of village just runs one of their own out for defending themselves!?"

He yelled and I was confused as to why he was so angry, but it made me a little happy to know someone cared so much.

"What village are you from Alixa?"

Jiraiya asked suddenly and I blinked in surprise.

"The…The Village Hidden Beneath the Moon."

I said in a small voice and his eyes widened a bit before placing a hand on his chin.

"That makes sense. I've heard that the founders of that village had spirits of hunters housed within them, so it'd be no real shock if you did seeing as you are a descendant from them. Though it is rare for one of you to be born now."

He said and I stared at the white haired man in shock.

_'How does he know so much about my village?'_

**'Calm down child, he is a sage. They are very intelligent, plus this guy is a lot older than you. He has wisdom we know nothing of.'**

The tigress said and I nodding in understanding.

"What about your parents? Where were they when the villagers ran you out?"

He asked and I looked down at my hands.

"Alixa? What is it?"

He asked concerned and I felt tears stinging my eyes at the thought of my parents.

"They were murdered."

I said and felt him still from his place across from me.

"They were murdered by a yellow eyed man named Orochimaru because he wanted to use me for what I am."

I said with hatred for the yellow eyed man lacing my voice.

"I'm sorry to hear that."

He said and I looked up at him to see him looking into the fire with a pained look in his eyes.

"I'm going to kill him."

I said after a while making Jiraiya look at me in shock.

"What?"

He asked.

"I'm going to kill him. The man who killed my parents."

I said and heard Jiraiya sigh.

"How are you going to do that when you have no training in the ninja arts at all? If you face him the way you are you will die and join your parents."

He said and I frowned. I knew that, I wasn't naïve enough to think I could take him, but I couldn't stand the thought of him walking around alive when he'd taken my parents from me.

"If you really want to kill him…."

Jiraiya said after a while making me look up at him.

"I can train you myself."

He said and I looked at him in shock.

_'Why would he do that? I'm just some random kid he found, why help me?'_

I wondered to myself and as if reading my thoughts he laughed.

"I don't know what it is, but something about you makes me think that with the proper training you might actually be able to do it."

He said and I smiled at him.

"In that case…."

I said as I bowed to him.

"Please take care of me!"

Jiraiya agreed to let me travel with him while he trained me, but I had no problem with that. Once the storm passed later that evening we set out. I was slightly excited about the idea of training, but at the same time nervous. I had no idea what to expect or what kind of teacher Jiraiya was. I looked at him as he walked ahead of me. Jiraiya was a tall man with waist-length, spiky white hair tied back into a pony tail, with two shoulder-length bangs that framed both sides of his face. He also had red lines that ran down from his eyes and had a horned forehead protector with the kanji for Oil on it. He had on a green short shirt kimono and matching pants. Under that I could see he wore mesh armor that showed out at places. He also had hand guards, a simple black belt wrapped around his waist, and sandals. I looked down at myself and blushed when I realized I wasn't in my clothes, instead I was in a pretty well made makeshift red top that hung off my left shoulder and red shorts. The top had a yellow dot on my chest and the shorts had a dot of the same color on the right side.

"Hey Jiraiya…"

I said getting his attention.

"Hm?"

He asked as he turned to look at me.

"Where did these clothes come from?"

I asked and noticed he looked away from me and scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

"Umm, well your clothes were dirty and tattered so I made you some clothes out of my haori."

He said and I looked back down at my new clothes in awe before smiling to myself.

"Thank you."

I said and he just nodded in response. Maybe my life isn't as bad as I'd originally thought. At least someone cares about my well being.


	4. Chapter 4

-Jiraiya-

I was shocked that Alixa was such a quick learner. When we'd stopped for the night I'd explained to her the basics of chakra and how we as ninja use it, she seemed to get it not that I doubted she would, she seemed quite smart for her age. I'd tried getting her used to summoning and maintaining her chakra so I had her try to walk on water and the first few times she fell in and shouted that the water was cold making me laugh, but then she got a determined look on her face, took a deep breath, and tried again. She was quite resilient for one so young, but then again she had a goal to kill Orochimaru and avenge her parents.

"Ha!"

I heard her cry out and looked up to see her standing ontop of the water's rippling surface.

"Try walking."

I said and she nodded before taking her first step. I smiled when it seemed she'd managed to do it perfectly.

"Good, now come back to shore so we can work on your jutsus."

I said and she nodded before running over to me.

"Alright, you understand about taijutsu, ninjutsu, and ginjutsu yes?"

I asked as she sat cross legged in front of me.

"Yes."

She said and I smiled.

"Alright, then the first thing I'll teach you is….."

* * *

**-FOUR YEARS LATER-**

* * *

-Alixa-

I waited, crouched in a tree as the deer trotted into the clearing towards the food I'd laid out. I masked my chakra and made sure to stay upwind of the deer and waited until it bent its head down to nibble at the berries I'd picked.

**'Now!'**

I jumped down and landed on its back making it ram its head back into mine and buck wildly, but I held on tightly. It ran through the trees and brush trying to throw me off, but I wrapped my legs around its stomach and reached for a kunai from the pouch strapped to my thigh. I pulled it out and positioned it right above the deer's heart before driving it in making it cry out in pain and increase its efforts to get me off of it, but eventually its efforts slowed and it fell to the ground and I jumped off its back. I pulled my kunai from its chest and cleaned it off before bending down and grabbing the deer's front legs and hoisting it up onto my shoulders before heading back towards the camp.

* * *

-Jiraiya-

I waited patiently for Alixa to come back with tonight's dinner. I'd stopped worrying about food soon after Alixa started traveling with me. In the four years we've been together and I've trained her, her inner spirit has also trained her. The bushes to my left rustled and I looked up as Alixa walked into the clearing carrying a deer easily twice her size over her shoulder. She walked up to me and dropped it before plopping to the ground with her legs crossed.

"There you go Jii-san."

She said with a smile and I couldn't help but smile back. She'd taken to calling me her grandfather after I told her how old I was, not that I particularly minded. She was quite a cute little granddaughter.

"Would you mind doing it this time Alixa?"

I asked motioning towards the deer and she simply nodded before moving to kneel by the deer's stomach, then pulled out a kunai and started gutting it and skinning it. I watched as she worked and couldn't help but smile at how much she'd grown. Her once shoulder length hair was now to about her mid-back when let down, but she usually kept it pulled back into a ponytail much like my own. She had grown into quite a lovely teenager, but I didn't think of her as anything other than my granddaughter and to be honest I was quite protective of her. I'd seen a couple boys from villages we stayed in try to flirt with her and she had to practically drag me out of each village before I could kill them. I wasn't sure if it was because of that that she had no interest in boys or the fact that she was still focused on avenging her parents. Her skill level was higher than that of an ANBU black ops, I'd personally seen to that though I'd made her promise to only use as much power as a genin unless more was required of her and she'd agreed saying she didn't want to cause any trouble for me, but she said she wouldn't hold back if she ran into Orochimaru and I could understand her wishes on that. Over the years of training and traveling with her I've noticed she's actually quite a smart girl, she thinks everything through before she does it but because of her somewhat childish attitude people often underestimate her abilities, but she said she didn't mind it just meant all the more when she proved them wrong. She was the both beautiful and deadly. I'd seen her in her tiger form only once and that was because I'd gotten drunk and couldn't really fight when I'd been suddenly surrounded by rogue ninja trying to kill me. I'd been pretty badly wounded until she showed up, she started crying when she saw me so beaten up and transformed and killed the ninja before pulling me onto her back and heading towards a clearing in the forest to take care of me. I'd gotten scolded pretty badly that night for scaring her like that.

"Here you go Jii-san."

Alixa said bringing me out of my thoughts and I saw her holding some of the deer meat to me. I smiled at her and took it and started eating it.

_'Four whole years.'_

I thought to myself as we ate in silence. It was hard to believe she's changed so much from the night I found her. She was so quiet back then, so withdrawn, but over the years she's come out of her shell, if only around me and she talks occasionally, but not enough to drive me insane.

"Jii-san…."

She said gaining my attention.

"Yes?"

I asked with a smile, but frowned when I saw the serious look on her face.

"What is it Alixa?"

I asked and saw her play with her fingers, something even all the training I'd given her couldn't break her of. She only did it when she was nervous or embarrassed. Though when she was embarrassed she played with her pointer and middle finger, when nervous she played with her middle and ring finger, like she was doing now.

"I…You've taught me all you know right?"

She asked and I looked at her before nodding.

"For now, yes."

I said and she nodded, but I could tell she still had something to say.

"Alixa…?"

I prompted and she took a deep breath before lifting her head to look me straight in the eye.

"Jiraiya, I want to go after Orochimaru."

She said using my name and my eyes widened when I realized just how serious she was. I knew this day would come sooner or later, though I would have preferred later rather than sooner.

"I understand."

I said and she looked at me shocked.

"Y-You do?"

She asked and I nodded.

"You asked me to train you so you could get your revenge for your parents. I won't stop you, just know you can always come find me when you're done. You are, after all, my granddaughter."

I said with a smile and she smiled before launching herself at me with cat-like grace and wrapping her arms around my neck in a hug making us both tumble over onto the ground and laugh.

"I'm going to miss you Jii-san."

She said and I sighed as I hugged her back, the moment suddenly serious again.

"And I you."

I said before pulling back. She moved back some and looked down at the deer before looking back at me.

"Thank you for everything Jiraiya, I'll see you around."

She said before bowing to me in thanks, then straightening back up and disappearing as she jumped into the trees. I smiled to myself as I realized I was going to be constantly worrying about her whether I wanted to or not, but then again she had managed to get close to me in a way no one else had. She may not be my granddaughter by blood, but she was like family to me and I was going to miss her until the next time we met.


	5. Chapter 5

-Alixa-

It's been three months since I left Jiraiya to travel on my own to hunt down that bastard Orochimaru and I haven't had any luck.

**'Maybe you will have to cause some trouble to lure him out.'**

My inner spirit said and I sighed.

'As good as that idea sounds, you know I can't do that Shakelle.'

I said to her and heard her growl in annoyance.

**'I know, but I'm getting a little impatient with the no show snake man.'**

She said and I couldn't help but smile at that.

'I know how you feel, but there's not much we can do about it. I mean, he is a Legendary Sannin turned bad. It's not like we're just going to run into him out of nowhere.'

I thought back to her before suddenly running into a wall and falling back on my ass.

"Oww."

I said rubbing my backside.

"I'm sorry."

A voice I hadn't heard since I was a child said and my blood ran cold and I froze.

"Are you alright?"

The voice asked and I slowly lifted my head with wide eyes to see the yellow eyed snake man, Orochimaru himself.

**'You were saying?'**

Shakelle asked and I growled at her to be quiet as I got to my feet.

"I'm fine."

I said softly as I stared at him. All these years of training to be ready to kill him, all the thoughts of slowly driving a kunai through his heart and the malice I've felt for him for killing my parents was nowhere to be found, all I felt right now was disbelief. Disbelief that I'd found him. Disbelief that I'd run into him. And disbelief that it seemed that he didn't recognize me at all.

"That's good."

He said with a crooked smile and that reminded me of that night and all my anger filled me at once, but a sharp roar from Shakelle had me controlling my emotions so that I appeared calm on the outside though on the outside I wanted nothing more than to rip his fucking guts out.

"You're Orochimaru right?"  
I asked, a plan forming in my mind. We were somewhat on the outskirts of the village and no one was around. If I could catch him off guard then I could kill him.

"Have we met?"

He asked with slightly narrowed eyes.

"Oh, not personally, but you knew my parents."

I said and added extra emphasis on the word 'parents'.

"Really? What were their names?"

He asked and I clenched my hands at my sides to keep from lashing out at him.

'All in due time. All in due time.'

I chanted to myself over and over to calm myself.

"M-

**'Wait child, don't tell him your parents' names because then he'll know who you are. Tell him someone else's name then attack. '**

Shakelle said and I mentally agreed.

"Mikanu and Inajo Dromynia."

I said changing everything except for our last name.

"I'm sorry, but I don't know anyone by those names."

He said and turned to leave.

'Shakelle….'

I said as I crouched down so that my palms were against the ground.

**'Got it.'**

She said and I growled at the retreating figure of Orochimaru, making him stop in shock. I charged at him and leapt through the air towards him, transforming into my tiger self mid jump and sank my teeth and claws into Orochimaru's shoulder and back. He cried out in a mix of pain and shock before I heard him growl in return. He tried to throw him off, but I growled and sank my teeth and claws deeper into his skin. Hunting and killing deer helped me be able to hold onto anything, that and it was easier to do so in this form. Orochimaru brought his hands infront of his chest and started signing and my eyes narrowed when I recognized what he was doing, but before I could react I was suddenly forced back and before I could regain my bearings I found my paws were trapped in the earth and I couldn't break free.

"You, little tiger, are going to pay for that."

He said with malice in his voice as he walked towards me with cold, calculated movements and I growled at him.

"Oh I'm not going to kill you, but by the end of this you're going to wish I had."

He said before I felt his hand move to the back of my neck and I growled and tried to bite him, but felt pressure on the back of my neck and everything started to blur. I heard the muffled sound of Orochimaru's laughter and saw a figure with white hair and glasses appear beside him before everything went black.


End file.
